


Blue Fire and Other Tales

by blueseakelp



Series: Burn Steady, My Child [2]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Azula (Avatar) Redemption, Child Abuse, Feelings, Multi, Outtakes, Ozai (Avatar) is an Asshole, Protective Azula (Avatar), Protective Zuko (Avatar), Swearing, Ursa (Avatar) is a Good Parent, azula and zuko on a lifeboat in the middle of the ocean, azula gets redemption, but not all the time OOP, i mean it’s fucking ozai, i’m just adding tags as i go, lots of them - Freeform, ozai is a garbage human being, she does love her children tho, we hate him
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-31
Updated: 2020-09-12
Packaged: 2021-03-06 14:11:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,945
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26210140
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blueseakelp/pseuds/blueseakelp
Summary: This is a collection of outtakes and oneshots based on my other fic, Burn Steady, My Child. Some can be understood without reading the other fic, some cannot.{blue fire: azula discovers her blue fire on a raft in the middle of the ocean. healing and emotions ensue}{gold inscriptions: why were there three matching bags in ursa’s closet? the fire siblings speculate what could have been.}
Relationships: Azula & Ursa (Avatar), Azula & Zuko (Avatar), Ursa & Zuko (Avatar)
Series: Burn Steady, My Child [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1903501
Comments: 23
Kudos: 227





	1. blue fire

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Azula discovers her blue fire on a raft in the middle of the ocean. Healing and emotions ensue.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i’m actually kinda proud of this scene?? it’s an outtake from ch. 10, in which zuko and azula drift on a lifeboat in the middle of the ocean alone, it’s meant to be after the scene where azula tries to firebend at the fish to catch them.
> 
> (trigger warnings will be in the end notes)

Zuko may or may not hate fishing with a passion. He is not getting better at it, and by some estimates he might be doing even  _ worse _ than before. On the contrary, Azula has already caught  _ two _ fish with her firebending. He’s still down to zero with his stupid knife, and the sun is setting already.

It was a really bad idea to challenge her to a competition. Azula  _ always _ wins at everything.

If only Zuko could firebend, maybe he’d have a chance, but it already took him the better part of a month to not have a mini freak-out in his mind upon seeing fire, and he’s not ready to hold a flame of his own. He started doing infrequent meditations again, back in Zeng Ju, but even that took immense effort and exhausted him for hours afterward. He’s not sure if there’s something wrong with his bending, or if it’s just his stupid emotions getting in the way.

A part of him really doesn’t want to firebend ever again, but Azula keeps saying stupidly rational things like,  _ That’s not healthy, Zuko! _ and  _ Stop running from your problems, Zuzu! _ and so he continues to meditate. With nothing safe to burn in the boat, Azula lets him practice with her own fire. If he gets nothing else from the experience, it at least makes him feel warm inside that she trusts him with her flames. Azula is not the type of person to relinquish control easily, and it makes him secretly very happy that she feels safe enough with him to let go of a bit.

“Zuko, Zuko, Zuko! Hey, Zuzu!” 

Zuko groans and facepalms. “Did you catch  _ another _ fish?”

“Nope!” Azula tugs on his arm to get him to look at her. “Zuzu, my fire!” 

Zuko sees it and gasps, dumbstruck. “Azula, it’s–”

“Blue fire! Blue fire!” Azula giggles, really giggles, gleefully, and Zuko is caught off guard by how pure it sounds. Sometimes he forgets that she’s so young. A warmth bubbles up within him. 

“That’s amazing, Lala,” he says, his voice still awed. “It’s so beautiful.” 

They both quiet and stare at it for a moment. It really is one of the most beautiful things Zuko has seen. He’s rarely ever seen blue fire, and never from another bender. The color is rich and piercing, like a flaming piece of the sky. Zuko can feel its warmth singing through his veins, hotter than any fire he’s encountered before. It’s practically bursting with life and pure energy.

“I’ve been trying to get it for so long.” Azula’s voice is small, and Zuko can see her eyes welling up with tears. She sniffs. “Father was always so disappointed when I couldn’t. But I did it all by myself.”

Zuko nods enthusiastically to her, his fingers clenching at the audacity of his father. “Father had no right to be disappointed. This is  _ yours, _ Azula. Your fire is beautiful and it is for  _ you _ only.”

Azula nods back at him, a smile beaming across her face. She giggles again and it makes Zuko’s mouth stretch wide until his cheeks hurt. Azula suddenly stands up in the boat, making it rock and tremble above the sea. Her hand still burns bright with the beautiful blue fire, and it’s a stunning contrast to the flaming sunset sky. 

Azula throws her head back to the heavens. “You hear that?” she yells, loud and freer than Zuko has ever heard. “This is  _ my  _ fire! Suck it, Loser Lord!” 

Zuko nearly chokes upon hearing the words and lets out an unintentional shriek of laughter. He claps a hand over his mouth and his eyes go wide. Zuko looks up at Azula, and then starts laughing again until his sides hurt. “Yeah, what she said!” he yells, through peals of laughter. 

“Loser Lord!” Azula taunts again. “Zuko and I are amazing and you don’t deserve us!”

She tilts her head over to where Zuko is still shaking from laughter, as if prompting him to say more. He looks back to the sky, trying to think of something. “Um, yeah!” he says, very eloquently. “We are so full of...awesomeness!”

Azula rolls her eyes fondly. “You are an incredible dum-dum.” She looks back down at her still-burning azure fire, as if to confirm that it’s still there. “Hey, Zuzu?” she asks.

Zuko hums. “Yeah, Lala?”

“Is it okay if I shoot my fire up into the air? I know you still don’t like flames that much so you can say no if you want to.”

Zuko takes a breath. “I think I’m okay with trying. But...can you do it with your back to me so it’s further away? I don’t know how close I can handle it.”

“Yeah, sure,” Azula says. She steps closer to the opposite end of the boat, away from Zuko, and she turns her back so that her flames face away. “Is this okay?”

Zuko nods, a bit shakily. “Yeah, I think that’s good.”

“Alright, but you  _ better _ tell me if it gets to be too much, Zuzu.” Azula takes a steadying breath, before lifting her hands to the sky and letting the fire go. It  _ dances _ as it moves away from her palms, hot and steady. Weirdly enough, it moves fluidly like ocean waves. Zuko is in awe. 

He thought that this fire might feel the same as all the others that he’s been so afraid of, but something about the blue and the pure energy that he can feel from Azula’s fire makes him almost calm inside. Zuko still has to bite down a bit to contain the fear from it’s heat, but it couldn’t be further from the feeling of his father’s flames and that thought comforts him.

Part of it probably has to do with how much he trusts Azula now, and how much she’s done to earn that. If someone had told him five months ago that Azula would ask if he was okay before shooting fire off, he would’ve laughed and called them insane. They’ve come so far together in such a short time, even though the steps along the way haven’t been exactly easy.

Zuko is proud of the progress they’ve made. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tw: mentions of child abuse
> 
> i just want my babies to be happy haha :)) Fuck You Ozai
> 
> i hope you enjoyed that little scene, i had fun writing it (even though it’s way too late and i’m really tired oof
> 
> please stay safe and take care of yourselves!


	2. gold inscriptions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The plan was never to stay. 
> 
> Why were there three matching bags in Ursa’s closet? The fire siblings speculate what could have been.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oof this is later than i expected, but school is sucking out my life haha
> 
> hope you enjoy this little piece, and trigger warnings will be in the end notes!

“Zuzu, do you remember when Mother gave us the matching bags?”

Zuko hums as he stares up at the stars next to Azula. The lifeboat rocks gently back and forth with each wave. 

“Yeah, they’re right here.”

“Don’t you think it’s interesting that she already had them on hand for us?”

Zuko considers this. “I don’t know. Why are you bringing this up?”

Azula lets a short silence fall before continuing. “I think...I think that Mother was going to run away. With us.”

“What?!” Zuko bolts up and looks at Azula, who continues staring lazily at the nighttime sky. 

“Yeah, Zuzu. You don’t remember this because you were unconscious, but when we escaped I took you through Mother’s room. I had to grab a cloak out of her closet and I saw a bag that matched ours laying there on the floor.”

Zuko gives Azula an incredulous look, which she deigns to ignore. “And you didn’t think to  _ take it _ with you?”

Azula rolls her eyes. “Why would I take something that I don’t need with me? Especially when we’re on the run from our father who is trying to kill us.”

“It would’ve been nice to have it.” Zuko scowls and lays back down. “And besides, what makes you so sure that she was going to run away with us?”

“There was only one bag,” Azula simply says.

“You only  _ saw _ one bag.”

Azula raises an eyebrow. “There  _ was _ only one bag,” she repeats. “Think about it Zuko. Why would Mother have three matching bags hidden in the back of her closet, with our names inscripted inside?”

“I don’t know, a surprise vacation?” Zuko guesses.

“We haven’t gone on a vacation since Uncle and Lu Ten left. That was almost three years ago. Father detests vacations; I see no reason we’d have to go.”

“Just because Father doesn’t like vacations doesn’t mean that  _ we _ couldn’t have gone,” Zuko protests.

Azula sighs and turns to look at him. “Do you remember that time that Mother snuck out with you to go watch a stupid play?”

Zuko blinks. “I–I didn’t know that  _ you _ knew about that.”

Azula huffs. “Of course I did. Mother didn’t even think to ask me along,” she says bitterly. “But it was probably smart of her; I might’ve told Father about your little excursion.”

“But, you didn’t,” says Zuko hesitantly.

“Why would I?” Azula asks. “I wanted to join you, not tell on you. And it’s not like I would’ve gotten anything out of it. Father would find some reason to be mad at  _ me _ about it too.”

“I’m sorry, Azula.”

“Why are  _ you _ apologizing, dum-dum? You're not the one who didn’t care about me enough to ask me to come along. Apologizing for things that aren’t your fault is stupid; stop doing it,” Azula orders. “ _ Anyway, _ my whole point is that you had to  _ sneak out _ to do something fun. Father would never have let us go on vacation. And Mother still had three bags ready, one for each of us? That she felt like she had to hide? The bags are  _ obviously _ to run away.”

“How–but how would we have even gotten away?” Zuko asks, still visibly trying to process this.

“Well, we ran away, didn’t we? And Mother seems to have connections with people; she found someone to basically smuggle us out of the Fire Nation. She probably had plans before we had to get out of there and she was just speeding them up. It makes sense.”

“I guess it does,” Zuko says. “I don’t know how to feel about it, though. I have so many questions that I wish I could ask Mother. I wonder how long–”

They sit in silence once more, letting the soft whistle of the wind fill the space.

Zuko speaks again, softly. “I guess I wish we had all gotten another chance.”

Azula doesn’t respond, but holds onto his arm and squeezes it lightly.

Does she wish that they had gotten to run away together?

Azula lets herself think. She does, in a way, wish that she had more time with Mother and Zuko together. She wants to be mad, angry at her mother that she could’ve taken them somewhere away from Father where they would be safe, and  _ happy. _ Azula is still upset that Zuko got all of Mother’s love, and she wants to mourn the fact that she might’ve gotten a chance at experiencing that if it weren’t for everything else that had happened over the past two months. She wants to be sad about everything that she lost, both because of her parents and because of her own faults. Azula thinks that maybe all this will hit harder later. 

But, at the same time, maybe not. These feelings will probably always be somewhere inside of her, clawing through her, the abandonment and hurt and anger and loss, but at this moment she feels content. Azula is glad, even though everything else blew up in their faces, that at least she now has her brother’s love. She tries to find the anger and sadness, but she mostly just comes up with peace. It’s strange. Zuko is probably the only person who has always really loved her, even though she did so many bad things to him, and now he’s the only person alive who really matters to her. 

Azula thinks that’s worth more than any past possibilities of what could’ve been.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tw: mentions of implied/referenced abuse and death
> 
> my original plan was actually to include ursa’s whole plan with the bags in her interlude, but i kinda forgot so this happened. 
> 
> if you ever want to talk, my tumblr is @nebulas-and-black-holes. please get some sleep and drink some water! take care of yourselves, and see you next time!


End file.
